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Commerce chief links hospitality to landing companies

COLUMBIA — The way some insiders tell it, the way to attract economic development is simple: Be prepared. And be yourself.

Three economic development experts, including S.C. Secretary of Commerce Bobby Hitt, offered their top tips during a panel session of the Governor’s Conference on Tourism and Travel, held at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center.

“Companies are reaching capacity, they’ve been sitting on cash, and they’re starting to pull triggers,” said James Chavez, president and CEO of the Clarksville-Montgomery County Economic Development Council in Tennessee.

“Be prepared to know what buildings you have available in the community that meet a certain client need, to know what land is available, to know what incentives you can offer. Be prepared,” he said.

Governments routinely try to woo businesses with incentive packages, often competing with neighboring states. Incentives may include offering to pay for sewer lines, roadways, and other basic infrastructure, providing job credits or other benefits.

The practice has been controversial to some who argue awarding incentives distorts the free market by favoring some companies over others.

Duane Parrish, director of the S.C. Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism, said “instilling pride in your people,” was his top tip. “Somebody’s out there, (and) they’re the face of your community,” he said.

Like the Hitt and Chavez, Parrish said the economy was recovering. He said the $15 billion estimate for the state’s tourism industry, down from a high of nearly $19 billion in the past, is likely to come in at $17-$18 billion for 2012.

Hitt said he agreed with both pieces of advice that Parrish and Chavez offered.

“You need to be prepared, and you need to be authentic,” the commerce secretary said, adding that in the current business climate,

“People are making decisions faster and faster.” They all pointed to the role of the hospitality industry, which employs 10 percent of the state’s workforce, in priming a location for a new manufacturing plant, retail center, or other investment.

Hitt also said that last year 70 percent of the state’s new money came from international business. He emphasized that when several sites all offer similar features to a company, some intangible factor can determine which one lands the company.

“I’ve had people site a plant because their son or daughter went to college in South Carolina.”